Below is a detailed summary of the steps, time and cost involved in registering a property in Ghana.
It assumes a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of a title dispute.
This information was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 189 economies.
The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2015.
#1 SELLER CONDUCTS THE TITLE SEARCH AND OBTAINS THE TITLE TRANSFER FORM AT THE LAND TITLE REGISTRY
Agency: Land Registration Division of the Lands Commission
A search at the Land Registry is conducted to confirm rightful ownership. An attorney prepares the transfer document (transfer deed) which is signed by both the vendor and the purchaser and their witnesses.
The Title Transfer form is duly executed and presented at the Land Registry.
TIME: Approximately two and a half weeks
COST: GHC 100 – 150
#2 ASSESSMENT OF THE PROPERTY VALUE AND PAYMENT OF STAMP DUTY
Agency: Land Valuation Division of the Lands Commission
Stamp Duty is assessed and paid at the Land Valuation Board.
The buyer presents the deed of assignment to the Land Valuation Board. The property is inspected to ascertain its current open market value.
The buyer pays Stamp Duty to the Land Valuation Board.
The Stamp Duty Act of 2005 (Act 6S9) reduced the stamp duty from 2% to 0.5%.
This Act states that for the conveyance or transfer on the sale of a property, the stamp duty is 0.25% where the property value is less than GHC 10000.
For properties valued between GHC 10000 and 50000, stamp duty is 0.5%, and for properties valued above GHC 50000, stamp duty is 1%.
TIME: 8 calendar days
COST: GHC 55 (Processing fee) + 1% of property value (stamp duty)
#3 SUBMIT APPLICATION FOR TITLE CERTIFICATE AT LAND TITLE REGISTRY
Agency: Land Registration Division of the Lands Commission
Submission of application form for Title Certificate and payment of processing fee at Land Title Registry.
The documentation shall include: (i) Application form (ii) Original and one copy of the deed of assignment, duly completed (iii) Land Certificate (iv) Company’s certificate of incorporation
TIME: 1 day
COST: GHC 2
#4 PUBLICATION OF TRANSACTION IN NATIONAL WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Agency: Land Registration Division of the Lands Commission
The transaction must be published in the national weekly newspaper in order to issue Land Title Certificate.
The fee for publication is GHC 25 for land the size of 0.25 acres or less. Where the Land Certificate is urgently required, the applicant has the option to choose what is known as “special publication”.
In that case, the amount payable is GHC 95. However, if the size of the land plot is above 1 acre (but less than 4 acres), the amount payable is GHC 125.
If the size of the land plot is above 4 acres, the amount payable is 2% of GHC 25 on every 0.25 acre.
The current position, however, is that where the size of the land is more than 4 acres, the amount payable is a flat rate of GHC 200.
TIME: 14 calendar days
COST: GHC 25
#5 ISSUANCE OF TITLE CERTIFICATE
Agency: Land Registration Division of the Lands Commission
The title Certificate is issued by the Land Title Registry.
The transaction is recorded on the Land Certificate, which is returned to the owner.
The original deed of assignment, having been stamped to show that it has been registered, is also returned to the applicant.
The Registry keeps a duplicate. The folio of the Register is filed and the transaction document is placed in the land parcel file.
The owner will use the property after the title is issued by Land Title (in areas covered by Land Title Registration) or when the Deed has been registered under the Deeds Registration Act and Development Permit granted by the Assembly.
Most often property owners do not wait to go through these processes before making use of the land.
How much is the plot of land in Ghana?
The average price of land for sale in Accra is GH₵27,500 per plot. The most expensive land costs GH₵30,000 per plot while the cheapest costs GH₵15,000 per plot.
There are 270 available land for sale in Accra, Ghana.